This piece was commissioned by Dr Nicholas Childs and Philip Biggs for the National Children’s Band of Great Britain.As the commission was for a youth band, I wanted to compose a piece of music that alluded to the styles and genres of music that are abundant in the current popular music market. However, the National Children’s Band isn’t just any old youth band; they are some of the finest young musicians in Great Britain. So the challenge was to compose a piece that included many popular music styles whilst providing enough of a test to keep the music technically interesting to work on and perform.The driving force behind the whole piece is the percussion section and in particular, the drum kit which is constant throughout. From the start the music is rhythmic and repetitive, similar to many dance tracks. The music begins to slowly unfold and build in texture and at bar 24 the syncopated main theme appears. This theme reappears throughout the piece along with various other motifs and solo lines. The music uses the styles, rock, pop, latin, funk and dance within the score and has a real fun factor about it.There are lots of opportunities for soloists to play and it is marked in the score where to stand and soloists can come out to the front of the stage. I really enjoyed working on this piece and I’m sure performers and audience members will enjoy it too.Paul Lovatt-Cooper

A real 'feel-good' piece that mixes the genres of dance, jazz, rock and funk that is an ideal showcase for band and soloists. Commissioned by Dr Nicholas Childs and Philip Biggs for the National Children's Band of Great Britain 2010. Circa 7'20".

This work was commissioned by David Childs who gave the first performance with the BBC Concert Orchestra at the Last Night of the Welsh Proms in 2009. 25 minutes in duration, the concerto is in four movements rather than three, loosely following the 'head-heart-feet-whole body' format of (humanist) symphonic design. Jenkins has stated, 'As is my wont, I've endeavoured to make the concerto somewhat quirky and "off the wall".'It is a work overridingly designed to connect with the listener, arguably Jenkins' greatest gift and a task it achieves with considerable aplomb. The individual movements also stand alone equally well when presented as individual solo items. This version, with brass band accompaniment, is a fantastic addition to the repertoire for any serious 21st century euphonium player!

Winter Hill is situated in the North West of England within the West Pennine Moors. It is a popular destination for walkers and on a clear day it offers views across Manchester, Liverpool, Blackpool, the Isle of Man, the Cumbrian Mountains and the Peak District. The hill is well named as there is an ever-present blusteriness even during the summer.On Winter Hill is an evocative concert item for solo euphonium and brass band which tells the story of a journey, in music, to the summit of the hill.The work opens with a quiet ostinato on solo cornets which is a musical interpretation of the swirling wind dancing around the peak of the summit. The wind is ever present on the hill and so is the ostinato building in volume and intensity as the journey progresses. The solo line uses modal writing and is fashioned as a ‘folksong without words' and gives work a feeling of melancholy and of ‘days gone by'. Perhaps the listener can imagine looking out from the side of the hill across the valley towards the now silent chimneys of industry.The summit of the hill is finally reached six bars before Figure G, which is the moment you walk into the wall of wind and sound that takes your breath away for a moment, but gives you an immense sense of achievement. The music here should be full and rich giving the soloist a moment to catch their breath. The work closes at the start of the descent from that moment you step off the peak of the hill and you are already back in a different world.